MatchesFashion has been blamed for the demise of The Vampire’s Wife, the fashion label founded in 2004 and headed up by Nick Cave’s wife, Susie. It had become the go-to brand for its dresses and won the eye of the fashion press as well as a loyal customer base that included royalty.
However, when MatchesFashion collapsed, many of the UK’s smaller independently owned fashion businesses were hit with large unrecoverable debts and the inability to retrieve the stock they had unwittingly supplied. What had previously been a steady source of bankable wholesale income turned sour.
Roksanda suffered a similar fate to The Vampire’s Wife. Others have been left having to plug the gap in their businesses’ finances in order to stave off administration.
This, of course, follows the problems that have hit other higher-end marketplaces like FarFetch, which proved to be a massive disappointment to its shareholders.
Even the well-heeled have been reining in their fashion spending during what has been a lacklustre year to date for many. Not to mention the ongoing battle to bring back tax-free shopping to recapture the overseas visitor demand that has been lost to other countries. This latter issue is being blamed for the ever-lighter footfall in London’s top stores and will, pundits say, lead to even more business closures.
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